JS Myoko is the third of four Japanese destroyers scheduled for outfitting
with the Aegis BMD Weapon System. JS Kongo, which successfully intercepted a
ballistic missile with its Aegis BMD Weapon System in a December test, was the
first Japanese ship equipped with Aegis BMD. Installation of Aegis BMD aboard
the second destroyer, JS Chokai, is under way in Nagasaki, Japan .

"In 2007, Aegis BMD delivered a host of 'firsts' in four increasingly
complex operational scenarios, closing the year with JS Kongo's successful
intercept -- a first for Japan ," said Orlando Carvalho , vice president and
general manager of Lockheed Martin's Surface-Sea Based Missile Defense line of
business. "Through all of those tests, our engineers were 100 percent focused
on delivering engineering excellence, and those successes exemplify commitment
to bring Aegis BMD to JS Myoko, as we have to JS Kongo and will to JS Chokai."

The Aegis Weapon System is the world's premier naval surface defense
system and is the foundation for Aegis BMD, the primary component of the sea-
based element of the United States ' Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS).

Aegis BMD has established a record of strong performance with 12
successful ballistic missile intercepts in 14 attempts.